Palm Springs, CA Special Events & Permits: Street Fair Rules (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing chapter
- Municipal Code Ch. 6.12
- Who suspends ordinances
- City Manager
- Appeal path
- City Council, Ch. 2.05
- Ordinances named
- Noise Ordinance, Sign Ordinance
- Adopted
- Ord. 1310, 1988
- Street fair vendor permit exemption
- § 5.89.040(E)(3)
Summary
Palm Springs lets the City Manager temporarily suspend regulatory ordinances, including the noise and sign ordinances, for street fairs, festivals and other visitor-drawing special events under Municipal Code Chapter 6.12. Every suspension must identify the exact dates, persons and code sections affected, and the City Manager's decision is appealable to the city council.
The City Manager may suspend the operation of any one or more regulatory ordinances to the extent that such ordinances would otherwise apply to one or more specifically designated special events conducted, sponsored, cosponsored or sanctioned by the City. The ordinances which may be suspended include, without thereby limiting, the Noise Ordinance, the Sign Ordinance, and any other regulatory ordinances which in the judgment of the City Manager would interfere with or impede the conduct of such designated special events.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: rev 4923139; v14 updated 2026-06-24).
Full Breakdown
12, Temporary Suspension of Regulatory Ordinances, was adopted by Ordinance 1310 in 1988 on the city council's finding that special events such as auto races, balloon races, film festivals, golf tournaments, and by clear implication street fairs, benefit the city's visitor-oriented economy by attracting visitors and generating favorable publicity, but that ordinarily desirable regulatory ordinances can impede running them. 05. 040 sets a mandatory five-part procedure for every suspension: the City Manager must identify the event, specify in as much detail as feasible the exact starting and ending dates and times of the suspension, identify the persons or organizations to whom it applies, designate the specific ordinance or code section (or portion of it) being suspended, and impose whatever conditions or restrictions are needed to protect public health, safety and welfare, while stating that the suspended ordinances remain in full force for everyone and every circumstance outside the designated event.
100(G) separately requires them to comport with the permissions and restrictions of the approved event permit rather than the chapter's general street-parking rules. 040(E)(3) excuses vendors participating in a lawfully permitted temporary event, expressly naming street fairs, from needing a separate sidewalk vendor permit.
Violations & Fines
Chapter 6.12 itself does not create a criminal penalty; it is a mechanism for lifting other ordinances for a designated event. Conduct outside the specific dates, persons, or sections named in a City Manager suspension remains fully subject to the underlying ordinance, meaning a vendor or organizer who exceeds the terms of an approved suspension is enforceable under whatever ordinance was only partially or conditionally lifted, such as the Noise Ordinance's standard penalties once the suspension period ends.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who approves suspending city ordinances for a Palm Springs street fair?
Do street fair vendors need a separate sidewalk vending permit in Palm Springs?
What must the City Manager specify when suspending an ordinance for an event?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Palm Springs
California rules heatmap·Compare Palm Springs to another location·View the California special events & permits overview
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